Ancient Roman Blue Glass Flask with Funnel Neck

$625.54

An Ancient Roman flask blown in pale blue glass. The vessel features a large globular body with a concave base and a short funnel-shaped neck, marked by shallow slanted and horizontal grooves. The glass displays its original translucency and it is partly covered by beautiful iridescence.

Date: Circa 3rd-4th century AD
Condition: Very fine, complete and intact. Earthly encrustations to the inside and outside of item.

SOLD

SKU: MG-173 Category: Tags: , ,

Glass production evolved during the Roman Empire with the introduction of glassblowing which allowed for a great variety of different shapes and styles to be constructed. The technique allowed for easier manipulation of the glass into more intricate designs with an assortment of functions. Glassblowing also allowed for a quicker paced production, the hot glass would be blown into a mould and then removed whilst still hot so that the glass maker could still work on it. Different minerals were added to create a variety of colours; the blue tint seen in this piece would have been created by adding cobalt oxide and copper oxide.

To find out more about Roman glass please see our relevant blog post: Ancient Roman Glass and Collecting Roman Glass.

Weight 89.4 g
Dimensions W 9.4 x H 12.8 cm
Culture

Region

Glass

Reference: For a similar item, please see The Metropolitan Museum, item 81.10.70

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